The Travel Kit

One of my biggest  barriers has been the sheer amount of equipment that it takes to do what I do
Playing a show is literally a full days work
2 hours of breaking down and packing the performance setup into The Van
1 hour of waiting around the club for someone to let me in
2 hours of unloading into the club and setting up (usually not including a torturous sound check)
30/45 minutes  to perform (usually for 3 people and the sound guy)
2 more hours of breakdown and packing back into The Van 
45 Minutes of lading from The Van to the house
It’s been a while since I played a gig that made any of this worth it so I stopped for a while
The idea of touring by myself  isn’t very practical either

The idea of a mini-kit came from trying to figure out how to get to Japan
I needed a compact drumkit that I could carry on a train or bus
Any of you who know me well have heard me talk about “pulling a stick up my ass”
Well, one of my big ones was that I had to have “real drums”
So, I had  to decide if I wanted my musical integrity as a drummer or did I ant to get my ass out and tour

I decided on the touring option
Once I got the idea, it took only a couple of hours to make it a physical reality
Right about that time,  I was listening to my co-worker Kevin talk about busking for tips with his cello
That’s when the light went off and I started thinking that I could do it too
I went to Nicollet Mall and noticed that there was an electrical outlet every 20/30 feet
Must be for all of the events/holliday parades etc…. that they have there
They also have various people playing guitars, hand drums, violins etc…
I figured that I would stick out like a sore thumb (but in a good way)
My biggest anxiety was the possibility of getting a ticket
Dallas has a zero tolerance policy for such shenannegans (it cuts down on aggressive panhandling)
I talked to a cop and described my plans
He told me that I will be OK if I pay attention to a couple of things
1- keep the volume down (all eclectronic so no problem)
2- stay away from the entrances of stores (if someone complains, you gotta go)
3- no aggressive panhandling (you can’t pass around a hat but people can throw tips in your case)
He said that using the electricity was not big deal so I decided to go for it

I made a preliminary video of the concept and here it is
I will be filming my exploits and will post it
Next year, JAPAN!
I am having a hard time